Catalan lawmakers officially outlawed bullfighting after the ban passed 64 to 55 voice in the 135-seat legislature, and will take effect in 2012.
Catalonia had been known to have a large degree of self-rule. At one time, it even tried to register its own national soccer team to FIFA, apart from the Spain's world champion national team. The bullfighting ban is seen as yet another political attempt by Catalonia to stand out from the rest of Spain.
As the bullfighting is one of Spain's identity and tourist attraction, the Spanish seems to be decreased in interest to the culture. Attendance at bullfights is on the decline in Spain, and Catalonia only stages 15 bouts a year, which are rarely sold out. Compare it to the nationwide total of roughly 1,000 staged fights in a year.
But the Catalan lawmakers insists, this has nothing to do with politics or national identity, but purely about "the suffering of the animal", nothing more.
Interestingly, Jose Montilla, the Catalan regional president, in the name of freedom, was voting against the ban. He believe, if the bullfight should be vanished, then let it vanished on its own. People should have the right when they decide to go and watch the fight.
Another Spanish region also had outlawed the bullfighting. Canary Islands was the first one to ban it because bullfight never got popular there. This ban resulting in no bullfight in the region in seven years.
Even in a region where bullfight were popular such as Madrid, the animal rights activists are presenting more than 50,000 signatures in their petition to ban bullfight. However, it will be a hard fought because Madrid is one of Spain's region where the cultural heritage stands strong, even inside the parliaments.
Should all major regions in Spain decided to ban the bullfight, then it would be a great identity loss to Spain, internationally. Whatever happened, bullfight is still exists in another countries such as Portugal, Mexico, and southern France.
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